A collection of historical and genalogical records
Started this discussion. Last reply by Jackie Stoddard May 30, 2018. 1 Reply 0 Likes
Started this discussion. Last reply by William Douglas Dec 7, 2020. 1 Reply 0 Likes
Started this discussion. Last reply by William Douglas May 1, 2013. 2 Replies 0 Likes
Added May 12, 2024 at 12:51
Added September 3, 2023 at 10:56
Added August 14, 2023 at 11:05
Added January 14, 2023 at 18:58
Added August 16, 2022 at 11:28
Added July 1, 2021 at 8:09
Added June 15, 2020 at 12:21
Added March 15, 2014 at 11:47
Added March 12, 2013 at 15:28
Added February 22, 2013 at 10:53
Added January 12, 2013 at 21:48
Added October 29, 2012 at 19:51
Posted on October 9, 2025 at 16:00 0 Comments 0 Likes
Whilst continuing work on the Douglas of Cavers family, I am looking at several 'missing links' that now seem to be coming together.
This story begins in the late 17th century with William Douglas, the 11th of Cavers, whose life ended in December 1676. His youngest son, Thomas Douglas, was…
Posted on September 19, 2025 at 9:30 6 Comments 0 Likes
On my visit to Piacenza I searched for this armorial unsuccessfuly.
I was told that I was in the centre of the Douglas Scotti area of the city and that there were lots of family palaces - but that did not help!
Posted on August 19, 2025 at 12:43 1 Comment 1 Like
Buried deep in the Archives, I came across a history of this particular family, which I share:
The Douglass family of North America can trace its origins to James Douglass, who was christened in Coldingham, Scotland, in 1755. A blacksmith by trade, he and his wife, Mary Wallace, had eight children. One of their sons, also named James,…
Posted on August 13, 2025 at 13:09 0 Comments 0 Likes
A member of the Methven family recently shared their family crest.
I was not aware of a familial linkage so have done some research, which may or may not be accurate as the heart in this image is not 'flaming'.
Here's what I found:
The Methven coat of arms does not traditionally include a heart. While some Smith families (who are…
ContinuePosted on August 6, 2025 at 15:00 3 Comments 0 Likes
Rev JOHN DRYSDALE AND HIS DESCENDANTS, 1681-1991 by D C L Drysdale, is
the story of Rev John Drysdale (1681-1726), Minister at Kirkcaldy from 1712-1726, and
his famous descendants, by his wife, Anne Ferguson, daughter of William Ferguson,
Provost of Kirkcaldy. His third son, Rev John Drysdale (1718-1788), minister in
Edinburgh, was twice elected Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of
Scotland. Another son, William Drysdale (1717-1757), was merchant and…
Added by William Douglas 0 Comments 0 Likes
Hi William, Albert Augustine Douglas was my GGGF (direct line).
Thank you. I believe I may have found some clues in Roxburgh, Scotland.
Thank you, not the William Douglas who once owned land at the hawkesbury region either. Although a very interesting article as the name Mary Grove's is the same (believe it or not). To an ancestor from the other side of the unconnected family in the UK.... once again thank you
Thank you! I have Bob's book on the descendants of Tom and Phoebe Douglas but I didn't know about his more recent manuscript. I'll follow up with Bob about that resource!
Paul,
You are welcome & good luck with your future research
Best regards
Ron
Ron, that is great info and I vaguely remember coming across that years ago when I first pieced this possible line together (I descend from Archibald's son William Harvey Douglass...the man loved "Harvey" for sure!). It's been long enough I think I need to dedicate come time to reassessing this information and you guys have been a great help! If you come across anything else I would be in your debt! But I think I'm going to reup my subscriptions on the relevant search sites and get back to work! Thanks so much! Paul
Hi Paul
I understand the nature of the problem you have - too many possibilities and not enough accurate information (without even considering a possible Irish aspect!).
I think the hard information that you have is:
- the 1837 Prison record as this specifies his name clearly as Archibald Harvey Dougla (but I am suspicious about the age quoted - 22 years)
- the 1835 marriage record, again his full name Archibald Harvey Douglas is clearly stated
There are two online Parish records:
https://www.lan-opc.org.uk/Prescot/stmary/baptisms_1839-1840.html
Baptism: 13 Jan 1839 St Mary the Virgin, Prescot, Lancashire
William Harvey Douglas - Son of Archibald Harvey Douglas & Mary
Abode: Prescot
Occupation: Dresser
Baptised By: Wm. Coombs
Register: Baptisms 1835 - 1842, Page 159, Entry 1267
Source: LDS Film 1657583
https://lan-opc.org.uk/Prescot/stmary/baptisms_1841-1842.html
Baptism: 24 Jan 1841 St Mary the Virgin, Prescot, Lancashire
John Douglas - Son of Archibald Harvey Douglas & Mary
Abode: Prescot
Occupation: Dresser
Baptised By: C. G. T. Driffield
Register: Baptisms 1835 - 1842, Page 234, Entry 1871
Source: LDS Film 1657583
Then there is the record for Henry Harvey Douglas - Christening 29 Mar 1846 Father Archibald Harvey Douglas St. Helens, Lancashire, England
and Henry Harvey Douglas's Marriage in 1868 with Archibald Harvey Douglas father - see images below:
It's obvious that Archibald likes to use his Harvey middle name.
So where does this middle name come from? Often middle names are carried down from a mother, Grandmother or other ancestor.
I briefly checked out this aspect (Douglas/Harvey) and again I come up with the Scottish connection:
- and it neatly ties in with the Dumfriesshire Douglases (Wilton in Roxburghshire is only 17 miles from Ewes in Dumfriesshire):
I personally don't look upon Census records as being accurate providers of genealogical data, if it confirms something that's fine - if the data deviates significantly then it is suspect. As far as I can recall none of the census records gave the 'Harvey' middle name.
Best regards
Ron
Hello Ronald! And thanks for the info, from William as well! Ole Archie is a bit of a conundrum for me, as I've been stuck on him for what feels like decades now! I had a tedious connection from him to James Douglas and Margaret Warwick from Dumfriesshire, but other than also having an Archibald born in or around the same time as mine that is all there really is to it. Maybe they were his parents, but hard to say for sure at this point. Especially since it's more likely he was born in the 1810s per census, a death record and his incarceration records in Liverpool in 1837. And despite the 1841 census saying he was born in Scotland, the 1851, 1861 and 1871 census say he was born in Prescot, Lancashire.
I also hired a professional genealogist in Liverpool to try to track him down in local and UK records a few years ago and he couldn't find anything definitive. So while there are still bits and pieces out there I've just about run out of luck at this point. It seems just about anyone on public sites take the connection to James and Margaret and run with it, but I'm just not confident that it was the case.
So the search continues, and all help is welcome! Thanks for commenting and appreciate everyone's work on this wonderful site! - Paul
Haha, I love that!
Seriously, haplogroups are basically ancient family branches on the tree of humanity. They're like genetic last names passed down mostly unchanged for thousands of years.
For Y-DNA (paternal line), a haplogroup follows you father's father's father, and so on. For mtDNA (maternal line), its your mother's mother's mother, etc. Scientists use these to group people by deep ancestry and migration patterns.
So when someone says they're in haplogroup R-FT353727 or I-M253, its like saying, "My ancient ancestors came from this specific region, and here is my spot on the human family tree."
If you're a male Douglas heir, you should definitely consider joining the Douglas DNA Project over at Family Tree DNA website. It helps all of us figure out how we're connected, and your results could be the missing link. :)
© 2025 Created by William Douglas.
Powered by
